Refrigerating apparatus utilizing dry ice



Sept. 26, 1950 A. 6. BROWN 2,523,530

REFRIGERATING APPARATUS UTILIZING may ICE File d Dec. 14, 1946 FIG. I.

I g I: 43 I 42 65 SI 44" l so \I so\ I I 5215: ,L h l h FIG. 4

INVENTOR ALFRED G. BROWN I Wmm M ATTORNEYS My present invention has to do withrefrigeration l atent eri ept. 26;

"PATENT oFFicfi REFRIGERATINGAPrARA rUs UTILIZING pay ICE I Alfred GrBrown, Los Angeles, Calif. I

by novel control and direction of expansible gases,

' particularly CO2.

This is acontinuation-in-part of my copending application Seria1' No.'482-,400,

' "filed April 9-, 1-943 and which-became Patent Nosli 2,512,916 onJune 2.7-, 195e, and has more particularly to do with improved apparatus for carrying out refrigeration by C02. I i

trial gases, being capable of expanding to many the appended c1aims, I do not intend that my in- -CO2 is one of the most compressible of indus- "hundred times its compressed;volumethat is, from its storage stateas-Dry Ice-and while the refrigeratingqualities of Dry Ice are well known; so far as'I am aware no one" has before obtained the phenomenal efficiency in refrigerating bythe use of Dry Ice that I have achieved my apparatus, among other things, to the ar O with my improved apparatus.

In general, I attribute the unusual success of rangement-of heat exchange surfaces and gas" passageways in a manner not only to provide excellent insulation, but alsoto expose the gas alterna'tely to relatively high and relatively low temperature heat exchange media in a' plurality. of cycles while continuously releasing a portion f h p n as. By this structure and profmultiple expansion.

It is therefore an aim of my present invention to provide a novel refrigerating unit of this character wherein the solidified CO2 is slowly sublimated and the resultant gases so directed as to obtainmaximnm refrigerating efiiciency. ',More particularly it is" an" object of the invention to provide a casing inlwhich the Dry. Ice

is contained and slowly sublimate'd and'iwhich has spaced, nestedheat' exchange'surfaces alongfwhich the gas is directedto alternately expose it to heat exchange {media ofrelatively high and relativelylow temperatures and from which, a

portion of the expanded gas is continuously released.

:Iof a novel cold storage structure utilizing one or l is a vertical sectiongof a cold storage structure made inaccordan'ce with my invention 5 'Vention. e

1 ApplicationDeceniber 14,; 1946, Serial No. 716,317

air Claims. (01. 62-915) and utilizing a plurality of my individual refrigerating units;

1 Fig. 2. is an enlarged fragmentary section of *"one'of' the walls of the cold storage structure;

Fig. 3 is a medial vertical section of a refrigeri ating unit made in accordance with my inventionj and Y Y 1 Fig. 4'is'a section on line 44 of Fig. 3.

v It will be understood, of course, that, within the broader scope of the invention-as defined by vention shall be limited to the precise details illustrated in the drawings and now to be described, inasmuch as the ensuing explanation will sug- 5 gest to those" skilled in this art further modifications which are Within the purview of the in- Referring now to the drawings, I show, in Figs.

'3 and 4, one of my refrigerating units generally designated by the numeral 5, wherein I utilize an outer casing 6 whose'side Walls are corrugated so as to present a maximum 'heat exchange surface. This outer casing has a bottom wall 6a closing itsbottom end and is open at its top. However, yon the top'enclv of the outer oasingl mount in sealed engagement therewith, as by mean of angle iron brackets 1, an outer hood 8 whose open :;top end is sealed by cover plate 9 secured thereon jbybolt and Wing nut assemblies 10, the bolts of 3 "which pass through brackets H and thence through holes in the cover 9.

' Nested in the outer casing and resting upon spacer blocks Hi, there is an inner casing, or Dry Ice container, I5 which is open at its top end The inner hood I6 is mounted on the open top C. of Dry Ice inspaced relationship not only to ,Qthe bottomwall of the inner casing but also to v the side walls thereof. Shelf- Zilis supportedjon angle iron brackets 2|.

My invention also contemplates the provision 45 V Preferably-I provide units 5 -alchof Whose inner casings'has a Dry Ice capacity of about five 52'- ,pound blocks of Dry Ice which may or may not e wrappedin paper or the. like, and the Dry Ice is so supportedin each innercasing that the fsidej walls of the blocks are spaced from the .,,,i'rine1- surface of the inner casing so as to provide .a' gas passageway 25 approximately 1 inches 'vvideextending along the sides of the blocks and beneath the shelf 20. The spacing of the side Walls of the inner and outer casings provides a portionsc, b andc.

gas passageway 30 approximately 2 inches wide. Passageways 25 and 30 communicate with each other at their bottoms through an opening 32 in the bottom wall of the inner casing, which opening is approximately 2 inches square. The spacing of the inner hood l6 from the side walls and top end of the inner casing provides a gas passageway 35 and the spacing of the outer hood 8 from the inner hood provides an expansion chamber 36,"the outefhood having "a restricted discharge opening 31 near its top, which opening is approximately 1 /2 inches in diameter. I

The outer and inner casings 6, 15, the outerv hood 8, and the shelf 20 are'made' of a suitable metal such as sheet steel having good heat trans fer qualities. Inner hood l6 may? be 'of said metal or may be of other material such as plywood. The inner casing approximately" 12 inches square in cross section, whilefthe outencasing is approximately 16 inches square in cross section. The outer, hood is approximately 19 inches square and the inner hood is approximately 13 /2 inches square in cross section.

In use, as the Dry Ice sublimates, the gas moves downwardly along passageway 25 and, upon reaching the bottom of the passageway, some of it will pass through opening 32, apparently some of it will pass upwardly along the inner surface of the side Wall of the inner casing until it encounters and entrains with colder downwardly moving gas, and apparently some of it will pass upwardly along passageway 30. Upon reaching chamber 315 some of the gas will enter the passageway 35 and recirculate and some of it will pass out through opening 31. Thus it appears that the gas, in passing from the initial sublimation to its final expansion, undergoes cycles of expansion and contraction, and the defined pasage- 4 5 are constructed as best shown in Fig; 2; each having an outer'wall portion'a and an" inner wall portion b consisting of five-ply plywood, and in termediate Wall portion c of a heat insulating composition such asfClotex faced on each side withfa sheet of paper d an dthe spaces e and fibetween the intermediate wall and the outer and inner walls are filled with a heat insulating mate'rial such as mineral wool.

I prefer to make the intermediate wall 44 of heatexchange material andprovidenearthe bottom one or more'openings'tfl, in each of which mounted a motor driven'blower' 5,2, the blowers pulling gas from the refrigerating unit-containin chamber to and discharging it into the cold storage chamber 6|. As the gasalosorbs heat in chamber 6| and further expands, it passes through the opening 52 in the top ofwall into chamber 60.

The gas which finally emerges through the opening 3 1 in'each of the units 5 is thus circulated and recirculated through the cold storage chamber and around the heat exchange surfaces 6," Buntil, in its state of final expansion, it seeps throughthe walls of the cabinet 4 0 for which purpose small openings are provided in the 'wall 10 a restricted opening therein, a Dry Ice supporting shelf mounted medially in the inner casing in spaced relation to the bottom thereof, said shelf defining with the bottom of the inner casing a gas passageway beneath and around the edges of the shelf, and an open bottomed hood supported on the top end portion of the inner casing with its side and top walls overlapping and in spaced relation thereto whereby to provide a gas passageway therebetween, said inner casing and its carried hood being nested in the outer casing with their walls in spaced relation thereto whereby to provide a gas passageway therebetween in communication with said other gas passageways.

2. Eefrigeratingapparatus comprising a closed outer casing having side walls of heat exchange material and presenting a restricted gas outlet opening in one'of its walls, the uppermost portion of said outer casing being larger incross 30, section than the lower'portion thereof, an inner open topped casing whose side and bottom walls are of heat exchange material, a Dry Ice supporting shelf mounted medially in the inner casing in spaced relation to the bottom thereof, said shelf defining with'the bottomof the inner casing a gas passagewaybenath and around the edges of the shelf, and an open bottomed hood supported on the, top end portion of the inner casing with its side and top walls overlapping and in spaced rela- 40 tion thereto, whereby. to provide a gas passageway therebetweenf said inner casing and its carried hood being neste'dfin the outer casing, with their walls in spaced relation thereto, whereby to provide a gas passageway therebetween in communi- 45. cation saidf'otli'er gas passageways.

Refrigerating apparatus comprising an outer closed metamc; casing whose top end portion is larger in cro s section than its bottom portion, an inner metallicfopen topped casing nested in thebutr cas'ingwit'h' itssid e and bottom end walls spaced from the side "and bottom walls of the 'outercasing,'the, topfportion, of the inner casing extending. into, th top end portion of the outer casin 'and the bottom end wall, of the 5 inner casing, having, a restricted opening there'- through, a 'Dry Ice supporting shelf mounted medially in the inner casing in spaced relation to the bottom thereof, said shelf defining with the botiem f the m 'r cas n as passageway beneath and around thedges of thes'helf, and an inverted hoodmounted on and in overlapping spacedrelationship to'the top end portion of the inner casing'and with its sidewalls spaced from the side wallsof the top end portion of the outer casing,

said outer casing having a restricted gas outlet.

4. Refrigerating apparatus comprising a closed outer casing having corrugated side. Walls of heat exchange material: and presenting a restricted gas'outlet opening in one. of its walls, an inner .01 941 topped casing whose side and bottom walls e of s paheat x an material, a. D Ic supporting, shelf 'm'ounted medially in the inner in spaced relationtofthe bottom thereof, said. shelf defining with. thefbottom of the. inner casing. a as passageway. beneathand around the 8 edges of the shelf, and an open bottomed hood supported on the top end portion of the inner casing with its side and top walls overlapping and in spaced relation thereto whereby to provide a gas passageway 'therebetween, said inner casing and its carried hood being nested in the outer casing with their walls in spaced relation thereto whereby to provide a gas passageway therebetween in communication with said other gas passageways.

ALFRED G. BROWN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,975,177 Sherrick Oct, 2, 1934 2,090,590 Clarke Aug. 17,1937 2,263,522 Scott 1 Nov. 18, 1941 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 552,672 Germany June 16, 1932 

